Learning English through Debating

Focus 1: Understanding the Fundamental Idea

of Debating

Objectives

By the end of the focus, students will be better able to:

 understand key terms and concepts of debating
 understand that arguments are fundamental to debating
 understand the importance of substantiating a stance with reasons and arguments
 understand the rules and procedure of a debate

Time Needed

 3 hours 10 minutes

Learning / Teaching / Assessment Tasks / Activities

 Students brainstorm ideas on a given situation and then take sides

 They formulate arguments based on a motion
 They study and analyse sample arguments using the problem-solution structure
 They write a speech against the motion “Everyone under 18 should be subject to an
8:00 pm curfew”
 They watch the video of a sample debate on curfew and identify key arguments
made by different speakers
 They read a chairperson’s speech to familiarise themselves with the rules and
procedure of debating

Materials Required

 Handouts on “Understanding the Fundamental Idea of Debating”

 DVD Track 1: Video of the debate on curfew
 Copies of the transcript of the debate on curfew (pages T11 – T12)
 Supplementary activity – “Listening for Main Ideas”(Learning Activity 7) (page
T103 of the “Supplementary Materials” section)

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 Learning English through Debating

Understanding the Fundamental Idea of Debating

Teacher’s Notes
Introduction
The activities in this focus will introduce students to some fundamental ideas of debating,
e.g. motion, argument and the problem-solution structure that helps to establish a case.
The objective is to enhance their knowledge and understanding of debating.

Learning Activity 1: Warm-up

10 minutes

Spend about 10 minutes on the warm-up exercise at the beginning of the class to
encourage students to get out of their desks and move about. This not only helps students
to project their voices and speak with confidence, but also enables students to concentrate
better in the lesson. If there is not enough time for both physical and voice warm-ups, you
can do either one. Full instructions for the warm-up exercise are provided on the student’s
handouts.

Learning Activity 2: Brainstorming reasons

10 minutes

This activity presents a situation students can easily relate to: they want to go to a concert
but their parents have doubts. Students will see the importance of persuasion when they
imagine themselves reasoning with their parents over the issue of freedom and discipline.
This activity will prepare students for a more structured and formal debate later on.

Ask students to form groups of no more than four and write down as many reasons FOR
and AGAINST going to the concert.

Ask students to share their answers with the rest of the class. You may either have them
list their ideas on the board or have them read their answers out loud which you will then
write on the board. It does not matter whether the reasons are strong / sensible or not. The
purpose of this activity is to encourage students to come up with as many ideas as
possible and to express their views freely.
Possible answers:
Reasons for Reasons against
 It is my favourite singer.  The next day is a school day.
 There is only one show.  It is going to be very crowded.
 The tickets are cheap.  There may be pickpockets.
 My friends are all going.  I may meet bad people and make bad friends.
 I like the singer’s music.  The music is going to be really loud.

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 Learning English through Debating

 It is a good way to relax after school.  It is dangerous to stay out late without the company
 There are going to be a lot of good-looking girls and of parents.
guys there.  The concert is far away from home.
 It is going to be cool and a lot of fun.

Catering for Learner Diversity

For less advanced students, it may be useful to provide a few reasons on the board as
examples or ask some guiding questions to help students to generate more ideas, e.g. “Is
it safe to go out late at night? What may happen in the concert? What may happen on
your way home?”

Alternatively, you can divide the class into two sides and have half of the class
brainstorm the reasons FOR going to the concert and the other half the reasons
AGAINST. They can then listen to the points made by the other side and take notes.

Learning Activity 3: Introduction to motion

10 minutes

Explain to the students that debating starts with an issue similar to the one they discussed
in Learning Activity 2, and introduce the concept of motion. A motion is a statement
phrased to favour one side of an issue. You can write the motion below on the board:

Everyone under 18 should be subject to an 8:00 pm curfew.

It is likely that most students will dislike this idea, and will be motivated to argue against
it. You may get a class that is all on one side, and at this stage, that is fine. You may then
need to point out the arguments the Affirmative may make.

In any case, give students a chance to decide which side they want to take. They either
AGREE or DISAGREE with the motion. In groups, students look at the reasons they
listed FOR and AGAINST the topic in Learning Activity 2 and decide whether they can
reuse some of the ideas. Besides concerts, what do young people want to do after 8:00
pm? The Affirmative’s arguments will stress the dangers and disadvantages of what
young people do in the evening away from their parents, and the Opposition will stress
what is positive. Students circle their choice to complete the statement on their handouts.
Then, get students to share their answers with the rest of the class.

Learning Activity 4: Introduction to argument

30 minutes

After students have decided which side to take, ask them to think of ways to defend it.
You may then explain the concept of argument.

Tell students that they will now focus on one side of the motion (i.e. the FOR side).

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Students now come up with possible reasons why parents and students might AGREE
with the motion “Everyone under 18 should be subject to an 8:00 pm curfew”. They can
either carry out the activity in groups or in class as a whole.

Tell students not to worry whether their arguments are right or wrong. There is no model
answer. The important thing is that they express an opinion and that they become aware
that some arguments / reasons are stronger than others. If students respond to and criticise
one another’s arguments, this is good and should be encouraged.

1. Encourage students to come up with as many arguments as possible and list them on
the board.

Possible answers:

Reasons why PARENTS might agree with the motion:

 A curfew can protect children from activities such as drug taking and sex.
 Students can have enough rest and get to school on time.
 Students will be protected from meeting bad people.
 Students will spend less money if they are not outside with their friends.

Reasons why STUDENTS might agree with the motion:

 Students can concentrate on studying.

 Students can have more rest / sleep.
 Their parents don’t have to worry about their safety.
 Students can stay home and help the family with housework.

2. Ask students to read the sample arguments on their handouts and identify which
sample argument might be made by parents and which by students. The purpose of
this activity is to make students aware of the importance of considering different
parties’ perspectives when analysing an issue. You may ask students to justify their
answers by pointing out phrases / sentences that create the impression that the
argument is made by parents or students.

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The underlined phrases / sentences provide some hint as to the speaker’s point
of view:

SAMPLE 1: PARENTS / STUDENTS

With the increase of crime in Hong Kong, I think that an 8:00 pm curfew is a good
idea. It gives boys less chance to get involved in misdeeds such as bullying, fighting,
smoking and going to parties where drugs are often involved . Girls will also have less
chance to get themselves into trouble, such as participating in sexual acts, partying all
night with their friends, or being pressured into smoking. As a result of the curfew, they
will have more time to concentrate on their schoolwork.
Another benefit of an 8:00 pm curfew is that the government will not need to
spend so much money policing the streets. The curfew will cut down on the number of
police needed to patrol the streets at night.

SAMPLE 2: PARENTS / STUDENTS

We are in favour of an 8:00 pm curfew to help keep our teenagers safe. Very often
we hear of teenagers committing crimes such as fighting, damaging public places, pick-
pocketing and doing drugs. Teenagers in Hong Kong today need rules to protect them
from such dangers. Even though teenagers are in school most of the day, it is after
school that teenagers are no longer protected. When we allow them to stay out all night,
they are more likely to get into danger.
If teenagers are at home by 8:00 pm, parents can feel more secure and relaxed
knowing that their children are not out wandering in the streets. Therefore parents can
concentrate on their jobs and work overtime.

3. The sample arguments focus on the consequences to students and parents if there is
no curfew. Ask students to identify some of the consequences mentioned in the
sample arguments.

Possible answers:

Consequences if there is no curfew:

 sex and pregnancy
 drugs
 bullying / fighting
 crimes such as damaging public places
 less time for schoolwork
 parents are stressed and worried

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Catering for Learner Diversity

For more advanced students, you can ask them to come up with new points that are
not included in the sample arguments. Some of the other possible consequences of not
introducing the curfew are:

 Many teenagers wander the streets aimlessly and never return home on time after school.
 Many teenagers miss meals at home and eat out too much.
 Many teenagers miss out on family time and don’t communicate with family members.

Learning Activity 5: Introduction to argument structure

30 minutes

Introduce the basic structure of an argument by explaining that arguments are often made
by first identifying a problem, and then proposing a solution to it. Read out the first half
of a sample speech arguing FOR the motion. Then ask students to read the speech on
their own before completing the task. After students have filled out the boxes in groups
with the possible problems which an 8:00 pm curfew may help solve, ask them to share
their answers with the rest of the class.

Suggested answers:

PROBLEMS IDENTIFIED BY THE SPEAKER SOLUTION

Young people buy drugs and drink alcohol.

Young people have sex at a young age.

8:00 PM
Parents find it impossible to control their CURFEW
children.

Students do not do schoolwork.

Read out the second half of the speech. It focusses on the effects of the solution (i.e. 8:00
pm curfews) proposed by the speaker. Students will write down the effects after you have
read the speech.

Suggested answers:

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SOLUTION PROPOSED BY THE SPEAKER EFFECTS OF THE SOLUTION

Young people will go home early.

Problems of drugs, underage drinking and

sex would be reduced.

8:00 PM
CURFEW
There will be less opportunity to drink.

They have enough time to study.

After going through the answers, make sure students understand the problem-solution
structure in constructing arguments. However, emphasise to students that NOT all
motions can fit into this model / framework. The problem-solution structure works well
with motions that propose a change of current practice to address issues or problems.

Catering for Learner Diversity

For less advanced students, you may need to go over key vocabulary with them
beforehand. You may also read slowly or repeat the speech if students find it difficult.

For more advanced students, you can opt to have students listen and take notes
without referring to the speech on their handouts.

Learning Activity 6: Portfolio Assignment 1

40 minutes or as homework

Students will now apply what they have learnt so far to argue AGAINST the motion. In
groups, students use some of the ideas that they have discussed in Learning Activity 2 to
complete the box in this activity. You may select some groups to present their ideas to the
class.

Then individually, students use the arguments they have collected to write a short
paragraph and submit it to you for feedback. They may use a separate sheet if necessary.
Regard this as a warm-up writing activity, and so if the quality of the writing turns out to

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be not as good as expected, let students know there is still room and time for
improvement. Remind students to keep all assignments in a folder as they may need to
revise or further develop their work later on in the module.

You can give students 40 minutes to complete the task in class or set it as a home
assignment. To encourage students to express their arguments more freely, tell students
that this first assignment will be marked on ideas but not grammar. This will help
students to focus on developing their ideas, rather than worrying about making
grammatical mistakes.

The suggested assessment criteria for this portfolio assignment have been provided on
page T121 of the “Supplementary Materials” section for your reference when assessing
students’ work and giving constructive feedback. After you return the assignments with
your comments, ask students to complete the “Assignment Checklist” (page S138) and
“Reflection Log – Portfolio Assignment 1” (page S139) to reflect on their work and come
up with strategies for improvement.

Catering for Learner Diversity

For less advanced students, you may introduce the following language items and
sentence structures to help them present their ideas:
Giving reasons:
 We should not impose a curfew because / as / since …
 Given that …, curfew is not necessarily beneficial to youngsters.
 The reason why we should not have a curfew is that …
Expressing opinions:
 I believe / don’t believe that …
 Most teenagers think / don’t think that …
 I agree / disagree that …
Modal verbs:
 The 8:00 pm curfew should not be imposed.
 A curfew may lead to many adverse effects.
Comparatives and superlatives:
 Crimes also happen at day time. It may not be more dangerous for children to go out
late at night.
 Home may not be the safest place for children, especially when the busy parents
leave their children unattended.
Conditionals:
 If we don’t allow teenagers to go out at night, they may become more rebellious.
Connectives:
 In fact, …
 Moreover/ In addition / Furthermore, …

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Learning Activity 7: Listening for main ideas

30 minutes

This activity aims to develop students’ ability to identify key ideas and arguments in
debate speeches, as well as to give students an idea of the order of speeches in a formal
debate. Students will watch a video of the first part of a debate on the motion “Everyone
under 18 should be subject to an 8:00 pm curfew” (DVD Track 1). The debate is
conducted in a format consistent with the one adopted in this module with each speech
lasting about 2 minutes.

Ask students to pay attention to the arguments made by the speakers and fill in the blanks
in the table as they watch the video.

Check the answers with the students afterwards. You may read out the answers for
students or distribute the transcript of the debate (pages T11 – T12).

Catering for Learner Diversity

For less advanced students, you can go over key vocabulary (e.g. teenage pregnancy,
underage drinking) with students before playing the video clip. Alternatively, you may
use the table provided on page T103 of the “Supplementary Materials” section, which
requires students to focus on fewer speeches. You may also consider giving out the
transcript to help students to locate the key ideas and complete the task.

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Possible answers:
AFFIRMATIVE CAPTAIN
 Young people have problems such as
1) drugs, sex and pregnancy,
2) underage drinking and
3) staying out all night.
 The solution is to have a curfew so that
the time spent on these activities is
limited.
AFFIRMATIVE 1ST SPEAKER
 6)Drugs and 7) teenage pregnancy are
serious problems in Hong Kong –
examples are given to support the
argument.
 The opponent is just using statistics to
understate the problem.
AFFIRMATIVE 2ND SPEAKER
 The issue is not whether crack cocaine is
the top drug but whether 9) there is a drug
problem.
 Alcoholism and other addictions can
10) destroy lives.
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Learning English through Debating
OPPOSITION CAPTAIN
 The teenage problems this motion is
supposed to solve are not really serious.
 Having a curfew is impractical because the
police do not have 4) unlimited resources.
 Having a curfew will not solve the
problems because 5) drug and sexual
activities can happen in the daytime.
 The curfew is a violation of young people’s
rights.
OPPOSITION 1ST SPEAKER
 The opponent is not using real stories and
has refused to admit that 8) the numbers
make a difference.
OPPOSITION 2ND SPEAKER
 Drinking can happen in the daytime.
 The opponents have failed to show that the
problem of drug and alcohol abuse is
serious in Hong Kong.
 Learning English through Debating

Transcript: Video for Learning Activity 7

Motion: Everyone under 18 should be subject to an 8:00 pm curfew

Affirmative captain: Ladies and gentlemen, I am here to present the motion “Everyone under 18 should
be subject to an 8:00 pm curfew”. By “curfew” here, we mean a law stating that all those under 18 must
be indoors at 8:00 pm. By this we intend a law passed in Hong Kong. The police would enforce it.

We all know that some young people have very serious problems. They buy drugs. They have sex and
become pregnant when they are too young. They begin drinking even as young as 13. Many parents find it
impossible to control the behaviour of their children late at night. Some teenagers stay out all night, and
the parents can do nothing about it. They do not do their schoolwork. If the next generation is poorly
educated, not only they themselves but their families and all of us will suffer.

We propose to solve this problem with a curfew. If young people know that the police will arrest them if
they stay out late, they will go home willingly to their parents. Most drug deals and sexual activities take
place at night, so these problems would be much reduced. They will have less opportunity to drink,
because they are either at school or with their parents in the earlier part of the day.

We have suggested 8:00 pm as an appropriate time. This will leave enough time for them to study. Thank
you.

Opposition captain: Ladies and gentlemen, my team and I are firmly opposed to this motion for three
reasons.

First, the problems this motion is supposed to address are not really serious. Young people in Hong Kong
are generally well-behaved by global standards. The number of teenage pregnancies is quite small, and the
rate of drunkenness and drug use among our young people is low. And yet our opponent wishes us to
believe that this very strong measure is necessary.

Second, it is impractical. The Affirmative side seems to believe that the police have unlimited resources.
They have a lot to do now chasing criminals and drug dealers. How can we expect them to spend their time
chasing ordinary teenagers who just want to go to a movie?

Third, it would not achieve its goal. My opponent has already granted that it is impossible to drink and
have sex in the daytime. We submit that all the activities that now take place at night would just happen in
the daytime.

Fourth, and most importantly, it is a major violation of the rights of young people. The great majority of
young people just want to go to a movie or to a dance, and have no intention of buying drugs or having
sex. Even if they did have sex, we must ask whether this is a worse evil than the crime of limiting their
freedom. We submit that the proposed measure is unjustified.

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 Learning English through Debating

Affirmative 1 st speaker: Ladies and gentlemen, my opponent has just argued that drug use and teenage
pregnancy are not serious problems. How is it possible to hold this position? Imagine a family living in a
regular flat in Kowloon. There is a girl of fifteen in the family. She meets bad companions at school who
encourage her to stop studying and instead waste her time chatting with them. She starts to stay out later
and later. One night, coming out of a night club, they meet an acquaintance who sells them crack cocaine.
Now, the problem with crack cocaine, ladies and gentlemen, is that it may feel good at first, but the user
very quickly becomes addicted. The girl becomes addicted. When she doesn’t get her drug, she starts to
shake and vomit. Her personality changes and she becomes unreasonably angry and anxious. Naturally, in
these circumstances, she will do what she must do to support her habit. She will first steal from her family,
and then, she might well become a prostitute. All this could have been prevented if she had been made to
stay home at night. My opponent has said that the “rate” of drug addiction is low in Hong Kong. How can
we even think about the “rate” when there is someone in our society who suffers as this family suffers? I
submit that my opponent is using statistics to keep the discussion cool, where this discussion should be
hot. We should be angry that such things happen at all, and do what we must do to take care of it.

Opposition 1 st speaker: Ladies and gentlemen, my opponent has painted a very disturbing picture.
Indeed, the family of the girl in the story has suffered. The problem is – it is just a story. My opponent has
not used a real example, and has refused to admit that the numbers make a difference.

My opponent has not even shown that one Hong Kong family has the problems she describes. The United
Nations publishes a list of 98 countries and territories in order of cocaine use. Hong Kong ranks 97 th. While
in the United States, 2.8 percent of the population uses cocaine in some form, the figure is 0.002 percent in
Hong Kong. That is, out of 1000 people in the United States, 28 use cocaine. In Hong Kong, the figure is
not even 1. In fact, out of 1,000,000 people in Hong Kong, the number of users would be around 20. In the
total population of Hong Kong, there are only about 140 users, including men and women of all ages, and
including those who use cocaine in less powerful forms. Is there even one family in the situation my
opponent describes? If there is one, surely it is better to treat that one family as a special case, instead of
putting a million young people effectively in prison.

This example also serves to show that the numbers make a difference. They make a difference because the
balance of things is important.

Affirmative 2 nd speaker: Ladies and gentlemen, it is true that crack cocaine is not our number one drug
problem in Hong Kong. But we are getting away from our topic here. The issue is not whether crack
cocaine is the top drug, but whether there is a drug problem.

In a study published last year, Poh C. Lai and Ann Mak concluded that heroin use in certain areas of Hong
Kong had risen. The website WD (Wrongdiagnosis.com) estimates that there are 380,000 alcohol abusers
in Hong Kong. And a report of the Hong Kong Federation of Youth Groups suggests that 80% of those
with alcohol problems begin drinking when they are still underage. In the face of this evidence, can our
opponents really say that there is no problem? Just because certain drugs are rare, do they believe that
there is no drug and alcohol problem? They cannot deny that alcoholism and other addictions destroy lives.
Thank you.

Opposition 2 nd speaker: So, our opponents have changed their position. They now believe that statistics
are very important. Yet it is equally important to take care how they are used. The same report by Lai and
Mak about heroin reports an overall decline in heroin use across Hong Kong. If the problem is declining,
why should we take measures that will curtail our young people’s freedom? The website WD lists alcohol
abuse rates with a warning: what they have done is taking the rate of alcohol abuse from the United States,
and dividing it by the population of Hong Kong. It is very obvious that this is not at all valid. Do most
alcohol abusers start drinking when they are underage? Certainly. No one would expect anything else. But
our earlier point still stands unchallenged: is it not true that drinking would just happen in the daytime?

Our opponents keep insisting on the problem of drug and alcohol abuse, but they have failed to show that
the problem is so serious as to merit this very strong solution. How can we justify denying well-behaved
young people the right to go to movies in the evening just so that a social problem concentrated in a few
areas of the city can – very questionably – be dealt with? We ask you to reject the motion.

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Learning Activity 8: Introduction to the procedure of debating

30 minutes

A. Understanding the procedure of debating

Go over the procedure of debating with the students. Remind them that there are many
forms and styles of debate and the format adopted in this module is only one of them.

Catering for Learner Diversity

For students interested in debating, you can give them an idea of other debate
formats. Some of the more common ones are:

 Parliamentary Debate
 Karl Popper Debate
 Mock Trial
 Lincoln-Douglas Debate

Detailed information of the above debate formats can be found on the following website:

http://www.idebate.org/teaching/debate_formats.php

B. Reading a chairperson’s speech

The chairperson introduces the rules and regulations of a debate. His / Her speech could
provide very useful references when students conduct a debate in class in the future. Ask
students to take turns to read the chairperson’s speech (rules and regulations) on page S13
and choose some students to read it aloud to the class. This activity not only enables
students to internalise the rundown of a debate and the roles of different people involved
in it, but also allows you to work on the pronunciation of some debate terms with
students (e.g. adjudicator, Affirmative).

To ensure a smooth reading, you may ask students to fill in the blanks with relevant
details (e.g. names of team members) or provide necessary details (e.g. duration of each
speech). Let students know they will eventually conduct a debate in class at the end of the
module and the speech will be useful.

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